


A Man of Honor

by PaperThinRevolutionary (SingFortissimo)



Series: King's College [11]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: F/F, M/M, character introduction!, john gets in a fight, maria is an angel and deserves so much better than this, mentions of abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-09
Updated: 2017-01-10
Packaged: 2018-09-16 01:46:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9268265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SingFortissimo/pseuds/PaperThinRevolutionary
Summary: When Alex is approached by a young woman after his mock trial class, his entire evening is turned upside down.





	1. Say No To This

“This is mock trial, right?”

Alex glanced up and raised a brow. “Yeah, it is, but it’s already over. I’m the last one here.” He responded, eyes meeting the body of a young woman. She was far enough away that all he could really make out was her shape (hourglass, a little bit thicker, _attractive as all get out_ ) being hugged by a velvety looking red dress, and curly chestnut hair cascading over her shoulders. 

The woman seemed to deflate when she heard that, and she closed in on herself even more, nearly hugging herself. “So I’m too late to find Alexander?” 

“Hamilton?” He raised a brow. 

“Yes, you know him?” 

“I mean, you could say that. Why do you want to see him?” Alex knit his brows now, taking a step closer. The woman closed a bit of the distance now as well, walking further into the room before sitting at the edge of the desk. 

“Well, somebody told me that he would be my best bet to figure out what to do.”

“What to do?” 

She only nodded as Alex moved closer. When she finally looked up, he saw something he didn’t expect. Gorgeous dark brown eyes looked back at him, though they were broken and scared. _Rightfully so_ , Alex thought, once he realized that her right eye was framed with a dark, heavy and painful looking bruise, and the red lipstick painted on pouty lips was only there to disguise the swelling and bruising on the bottom, which appeared to be just this side of healing. He resisted the soft little gasp that threatened to leave him. “Well,” he finally said, closing the distance carefully and offering his hand. “Hopefully they were right. I’m Alexander. Alex, though, please.” He said gently and offered his hand to her. “Do you want to tell me what happened?” 

Despite the injuries, Alex couldn’t help but note that she was absolutely _gorgeous_. He shook the thought away when she shifted on the desk a little bit and sighed. “Not here. One of his friends might come in.”

“His..?”

“James.” The look on her face was enough to show that she wasn’t going to say more. Not here, at least. So Alex just nodded to her. It took her a few seconds, but soon enough, she took his hand and slid off of the desk. She stood just an inch or so shorter than Alexander did. He offered his arm to her and bit his lip. 

“Alright, I… Yeah, okay. Can we leave together? Is that.. Is that too dangerous?” Alex questioned as she took his arm to steady and ground herself back in reality. 

“Yes. He’s out of town for the weekend, off with the basketball team.” She explained softly, looking a little bit relieved at that fact. Alex nodded and gestured for her to come along with him. 

“Where do you want to go, where will you be comfortable?” He asked softly, watching as she removed a scarf and a hat from her bag, putting them on to conceal her identity at least a little bit more. Just in case. She glanced around as they exited the building, then put on a pair of large sunglasses. 

Alex couldn’t help but think that she looked like Carmen Sandiego. 

“Back to my dorm would be alright. I would hate to impose in yours.” She responded gently. His eyes couldn’t help but follow the sway of her hips once she got a few steps ahead of him, absolutely enamored in the way the dress hugged her body, emphasizing the curve of her hips, the shape and size of her thighs. 

Alexander hadn’t been one to ogle and lust after a woman like this, he had gotten most of that out of his system before coming to school, but when he watched the woman walk away, he couldn’t help himself. 

_Yep. Carmen Sandiego._

_Except hotter._

_**Stop that.** _

Before they got any further, he cleared his throat. “Can I at least ask your name?” He managed to spit out, but it sounded a bit strangled even then. 

She turned around and looked at him. He could barely make out her gaze through the glasses. “Maria.” She said gently. “Lewis.” 

He nodded and smiled. “Maria Lewis. It’s nice to meet you, though I wish the circumstances were better…” 

She gave a hint of a smile with that. “So do I, Alex..” 

The rest of the walk back to her dorm was quiet, and she was on edge until they were inside, and the door was locked behind her. She hung the scarf and hat up in her closet, then sat at the edge of her bed, looking up to Alex. 

“I’m so sorry that I bothered you, but I didn’t know where to turn. None of the faculty would believe me, they all.. They all like James too much.” She was playing absently with the hem of her skirt as she spoke to him, and she didn’t look up from it. 

“James, who.. Who exactly is James?” He asked softly. 

She swallowed down a lump in her throat and glanced more at her hands now, causing Alex to do the same. He bit his lip when he saw a small silver band, diamonds placed all along it. _Oh, shit_.

“My fiancé.” She muttered, hand now fiddling with the ring. “He’s.. The… The new basketball coach here.” 

“Coach Reynolds is your—… Fuck. And he’s the one…?” He vaguely gestured at her, now noticing thick dark bruises around her wrists as well. 

This guy was a real piece of work. 

She nodded a bit and her breathing became a little more shallow. 

Alex put his hand on her back, rubbing small circles between her shoulder blades. 

“Keep breathing, Maria. It’s okay. I won’t let him do this to you again.” Alex assured softly. Maria moved closer to him, their thighs now pressed together all the way to the hip, their sides touching gently. Her head was on his shoulder now. 

_At least she feels comfortable with me._

“Alright, I… I think I may have an idea. You can come stay with me when he gets back if you would feel safer.” He said gently, vaguely noticing her hand resting on his knee, threatening to slip higher onto his thigh.   
He swallowed hard, feeling a shiver rocket down his spine. 

She was just hurt, misguided. She didn’t mean anything by this. 

“Thank you, Alexander,” she began, moving a little bit closer. “This means the world to me, you know..” Her voice was soft, and they were damn near nose-to-nose when she fell silent again. 

Alex thought his heart was going to beat out of his chest, and he didn’t know how to stop what was happening. He could feel how warm she was, he could tell how soft they could be… God… He sucked in a deep breath, watching her eyes slip shut. 

Before their lips connected, but not before they could brush slightly, Alex shot up, and in a soft voice (which cracked when he spoke), he asked “Where’s the bathroom?”

She jumped back a little, her own cheeks flushing as she gestured down the hall. He bolted down and shut the door behind him, sliding down against it into a sitting position on the floor. 

He didn’t expect any of this to happen, but thank god he stepped away from it. 

He needed to call John.


	2. Confession Time

Alex managed to escape the situation through a sheer force of will (and the thought of John, imagine if he did it… Imagine if John found out… He shuddered at the idea), and now had himself shut up in the bathroom of Maria Lewis’ dorm.

His hands trembled as he went to text John, but he wasn’t even sure what to say. He probably rewrote the message ten times before he finally sent it. 

_**Small Ham Man:** John, I don’t really know how to explain what’s going on but I want you to know that I didn’t do anything. _

_**Curly Fry:** I’m…   
Proud? I guess?  
What the hell are you talking about?_

_**Small Ham Man:** Okay.   
Well.   
There’s this girl. Her name’s Maria._

_**Curly Fry:** Well that’s reassuring._

_**Small Ham Man:** Ha ha.   
She approached me after the meeting today. Said that her partner is doing some terrible shit to her and asked me to help her? I think she tried to kiss me???? I don’t really know what happened but I want you to know I didn’t do anything and I’m locked in her bathroom to make sure nothing happens._

Just a few seconds after the message sent, his phone was ringing. 

“John--”

“Do you believe her?” He sounded… Scared. Worried. Alex knit his brow. Shit. 

“What..?”

“Do you believe her?” He asked again, voice a little more urgent. He was scared, he felt like John didn’t believe him, and that was terrifying. 

“Yes, yeah, of course I do. She’s… Not in the best shape. She’s been beaten up on pretty bad.” Alex was sure to keep his voice soft, sincere. He didn’t want to lose John’s trust. 

“Alright, I.. Might have an idea. Let’s…” He heard John suck in his breath, then there was a bit of shuffling on the other end. “Okay. Okay. Go ask her if she’s comfortable with someone else joining you, okay?” He knew John wanted to scope out the situation for himself, so he wouldn’t argue it at all. 

“Yeah, of course. I.. What if she tries again though?” Alex asked softly. He would be lying if he said he didn’t want to entertain the idea, but… He couldn’t do that to John. There was no way. 

“Then… Well.. I don’t know. If she does, I won’t blame you, okay?” He said gently, but Alex knew he would still be hurt if it happened. “I can’t even begin to imagine what she must be going through.” John sounded frazzled, to say the absolute least. Alex felt terrible for bringing him into this, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave Maria alone after all that. 

“Alright, I’ll… I’ll go ask. I’ll text you her address if she agrees. I love you, John.”

“I love you, too, Alex.” He said softly and blew him a kiss through the phone. Alex did the same before hanging up, pocketing his phone again. He stood up and sucked in a deep breath, looking at the door before he stepped back outside. 

He was met with a wide eyed Maria in the living room, wringing her scarf nervously in her fists. She gasped gently when he stepped out, and before he could speak, she was on her feet. “Alexander, I’m so sorry, I don’t… I don’t know what came over me, I--”

“Ssh, Maria, it’s… It’s alright. I understand, I.. I called my boyfriend, he thinks he knows how to help. He’d like to come over, if you’re okay with it?”

“Boyfriend?” She squeaked out, cheeks flushed. “Oh, my god, I’m so sorry!” 

“No, it’s alright, it’s…” He bit his lip and walked over to sit beside her, opening his arms. “I still want to help, really. I just can’t… Help like _that_.”

She leaned against him a little bit once they were both seated, a soft sigh leaving her lips. “I understand.” She just didn’t really know how to show gratitude beyond anything physical. “Your boyfriend can come over, if.. If you think it’s a good idea.”

“John is wonderful, I’m sure he’ll be able to help.” Alex assured, rubbing her back with one hand and texting John with the other. “Just relax, okay? We can handle this, so long as you’re comfortable talking to us about what happened.” 

“Of course,” Maria nodded. “Anything. Whatever i need to do, I just.. I can’t do this anymore.” She murmured, eyes downcast. “I think I'm going to pour myself a drink. Go ahead and make yourself comfortable?” She gave the smallest smile before she got up, slipping off to dig through her cupboards to find something, _anything_ alcoholic. 

Alex nodded and sighed gently, fiddling with his phone. Thankfully, the dorm building he and John resided in wasn’t too far away, and knowing John’s speed, it would take him just a few moments to arrive. 

By the time Maria entered the room again, cocktail glass tight in hand, Alex was standing to greet John at the door. They shared a small smile, short and a little bit awkward, honestly, but it could have been worse. 

Thank god for John knocking and breaking the tension. 

He hurried over and swung the door open, nearly giving a relieved sigh when he fell forward and hugged John, brief as it was. Soon, he tugged the other into the apartment and helped him settle down. John and Maria shared a quick glance, and that seemed to be enough to help Maria relax. Obviously she wasn’t intimidated by him. That was already a good sign. 

John took the seat between Alex and Maria on the couch, almost immediately offering her both of his hands. She took them with no hesitation. John always had that calming effect on people--when he wasn’t all riled up at least. 

“You must be Maria. I’m John Laurens. Alexander’s boyfriend.” He spoke softly, tracing his thumbs over the back of her hands to help her relax a bit more. “Alex told me you were in trouble, he told me something was wrong, but he didn’t say exactly what. Would you like to tell me what’s been happening?” 

She sucked in a shaky breath and absently laced her fingers with John’s. “Alright. Okay.”

“Just start wherever you’re comfortable, sweetheart. We can stop at any time.” He assured, squeezing her hands and earning a small smile. He finally noticed the bruises and injuries she carried. It made his stomach flip. 

“One of my friends told me that Alex may be able to help me. My fiance is… Well..” She trailed off and sighed. “He’s the new basketball coach here, James. Things were pretty alright. They were good. He treated me well for a while, especially when we first started dating. We were always… Well, he was always a little bit protective. Overprotective. He always wanted to know where I was, what I was doing. I figured it was just.. Well… I don’t know. I thought it was just because he loved me. Cared. Wanted me to be safe.” She shrugged a little and pulled her hands away from John’s to begin fiddling with the edge of her dress. 

 

“I had, well… I had a bit of a realization a while ago. After a bit of thought, something I’ve been stewing over for.. God, eight years now? And I finally decided it was time to talk to him. This was.. About three months ago. About two months after we got engaged..? Anyway.” She brought her hand up and chewed absently at her thumb nail, the dark nail polish already chipped from before. John was sure that she had been doing that quite a bit. And likely for a while. She took another breath before she continued speaking. 

“I finally had the realization and thought it a good idea to well… To come out to him. As bisexual. He… Didn’t take too well to that. He wasn’t too happy to hear that, and… His protective attitude changed, it was like night and day. He used to be so gentle, so.. So loving. Everything was different after I told him, though. He started being rougher, more.. Aggressive. I’ve tried to get out, but he knows so much, he’s.. He could ruin me. I can’t leave him. 

“I don’t really know what started it, but the uh… Well.. It stopped being just emotional. He started drinking more. He started lashing out more. Not just verbally.” Her voice was soft, small. “He’s only hit me twice, the.. The my lip is mostly healed, but my eye.. That was just last night. Before he left with the team. He was drinking more, said… He said terrible things about me before it happened. All of this just.. Because I’m bi? I don’t have any reason behind it, I can’t explain it. I just.. I need to get out of this. And I was told that Alexander could help me.” Her voice had shrunk, barely a whisper by the end of it. She sniffled a little bit, wiping away the tears that had started to well in the corners of her eyes. It wasn’t long before she was hiccuping, choking on broken breaths that she was trying to stop. 

They all sat in silence together, save for her choppy breaths, John holding Maria tight and petting her hair. He waited for her to calm down, to gather her breaths again and to relax enough that she could breathe again properly. 

“We’ll get you out of here, okay Maria? Alex can work on the legal factors of it, he knows damn near everyone in the department, not to mention the people he’s interned for, connected with. There’s nothing that you have to do to end an engagement beyond leaving your ring, cancelling whatever reservations. As for.. Well.. Hm.” John stopped, rubbing her back a little. She relaxed against him, then looked up at her with her head cocked just a little bit. 

John and Alex shared a look, just for a moment, and she could tell that Alex had mouthed something to him. She had no idea what, but both men seemed pleased with the idea. 

“When he comes back, even before then if you’d like, I think we know a place where you can stay. Alex and I can handle contacting the police, if you don’t want to do that. Alex, would you be a dear and go text Eliza?” 

 

Alex nodded and got up to go into the other room, leaving John and Maria alone. Maria pulled away from him enough that she could make eye contact with him, look him over a little bit. “You’re.. Thank you.. You really don’t need to go through all of this for me, John.”

He just smiled and offered his hand again, squeezed hers once she took it. “It’s alright. It’s okay. I promise. We want to help you, okay? We’ll do anything we need to to make sure you’re safe.” He assured softly, opening his arms to her again. 

She smiled just a little and wrapped tight around him, her face pressed to his chest. “Thank you so much..”

“Of course… But you know, you’re stuck with us now?” He said with a soft, playful smile. It even earned a laugh from her. 

“I wouldn’t want any different. You two are absolute angels, I owe you both so much…” She said gently, moving away to kiss his forehead gently. 

As she pulled back, Alex re-entered the room with a smile of his own. “She’s home, we can head over whenever, and she said that Maria can stay as long as she needs to.” 

“We can come back and pack an overnight bag for you if you want to start staying with her early, okay?” John offered, and she nodded. “Do you want to go over tonight?”

After a moment of hesitation, she nodded and stood, offering her hand to John to help him up as well. “I think I would, yeah. You really don’t think that this is… This isn’t too much?” 

“No, no. Of course not. Eliza’s excited to meet you, and she’s happy to help. She lives off campus, just a short subway ride away.” Alex said, then glanced to John.

“We can call a cab, too, if you’d like.” He assured, and she nodded again. 

“The subway is fine. Let’s… What does she like? I’d like to get something for her, to thank her.” 

John and Alex shared another look, then both nodded. “Let’s pick up dinner for all of us and take it over? I’m sure she hasn’t cooked yet, and she would appreciate it.” Alex smiled.

John added quickly; “I know her favorite flowers, too. And ice cream. She would love that.”

And just like that, the three of them were out the door. 

~~

Flowers in hand, Alex knocked at the door to the small apartment. Maria held tight to John, looking substantially more worried than she wanted to lead on. John kept his arm wrapped around her waist, holding her close to keep her feeling safe. 

Of course, once the door swung open and Eliza stood there, nearly glowing, Maria relaxed. John noted that her jaw damn near dropped, looking to be completely infatuated by her. 

This was going much better than he expected. Maybe, just maybe, this would work out for Maria after all…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alex said no to this. 
> 
> maria is going to find happiness 
> 
> i love my children.
> 
> until next time,  
> -krys


	3. Practiced the Law; Practically Perfected It

The immediate chemistry between the girls was absolutely mind-boggling. That first night they clicked like they had known each other their entire lives, and by the end of it, they were nearly side by side on the couch, giggling and even holding hands by the time John and Alex left. 

John couldn’t help but note that Maria had left her engagement ring behind. 

Good for her. He couldn’t even imagine the amount of courage it had taken. 

Once they were out of the apartment, arms linked and heading back to the dorms, John and Alex were both back to the serious issue at hand; What were they going to do about James? 

“I can start asking around, between my professors and my internships, I know I can find someone who would be more than happy to prosecute this case. Washington would be happy to help. He would know someone who would be happy to take the case. I just need to... “ He grabbed his phone with his free hand, then sucked in a breath, quickly tapping out an email with one thumb, brows drawn together the entire time. This was going to work, this was going to be okay. 

It would be alright.

Maria would be alright.

“She’s gonna be okay, right?” Alex finally voiced his anxieties, glancing back to John. “I know she’s with Eliza, I know she’ll keep Maria safe, but.. _Fuck_ , John. He’s a big name on campus. What do we do?” 

“We let Eliza handle that side of it. Philip is going to help her, you know he will. All of this can be looked at discreetly, and it will be. This is a pretty high profile thing for the university, it’ll be handled quietly, and she’ll be safe. We’ll make sure she’s safe. It’s going to be all good. Just… Believe. Have faith that we can do this, and.. We’ll do this. She’s gonna be okay.” John squeezed his hand and kissed his cheek. 

Alex relaxed just slightly, sucked in a breath, stretched up to kiss John’s cheek in response. 

A silent prayer for her well being.

Another for their luck in the coming weeks. 

They could do this. 

They could definitely do this. 

~~

Three days later and Maria had given her report to the police. They had evidence photographed, her injuries all documented, and it was done. She requested and filed a restraining order, served to James the moment he and the team were back in town. 

Alex, John, and Eliza stayed by her side every moment. 

Thank god for that, because when James got the order, he was livid. 

None of them knew how, but he managed to find Eliza, and with that, Maria. The boys were convinced that he had tracked her cell phone (she took one of John’s old phones immediately after the incident, transferring over to that so she couldn’t be found again. Not that it mattered, considering…) 

James stormed up to the front door, fist banging on the door until it swung open, John standing behind it with a raised brow. “Can I help you?”

“Where the fuck is she?” He hissed, eyes narrowed and fists clenched. 

“Who the fuck are you?” John responded in the same tone, standing his ground and trying to keep an intimidating stance, trying to get the other man to back down. 

It wasn’t working. 

“What the fuck does it matter who I am, where the hell is Maria!?” He spat, shoving John as hard as he could. The younger man shifted his weight to try and hold his balance. 

“If you lay your hands on me again, I’m going to kick your ass.” John’s voice was more of a growl than speech. So long as he warned the man, luck was on his side. 

James just scoffed. “I’d like to fucking see you try!” 

And he shoved John again. 

That was all it took for the smaller man to launch out of the room, tackling James to the ground outside of the apartment with a force he didn’t even think he was capable of. 

James managed to get a few good hits in, but John had most of the control, pinning the other man down and taking a series of tough swings of his own. 

Thank god one of the girl had called the police the second they heard James’ voice.

And thank god for a quick response time. 

John did have to be pried off of the other man though, still kicking and screaming profanities at the other. All things considered, John was lucky that James was fully in the wrong in this situation, violating the restraining order and initiating the fight to begin with. 

John didn’t even need to plead self defense, just had to sit in the back of an ambulance as they repaired his split lip. 

 

Maria didn’t leave Eliza’s side for the rest of the night. 

~~

Then, the trial. 

Through sheer force of will, Alex managed to get the man he was interning for to represent Maria. Alex was right by his side through the entire case. 

It broke his heart to see her so scared, to see the photos of all the bruises and damage that son of a bitch had done to such a sweet girl. 

Alex fought tooth and nail for her defense, doing everything in his power to make sure that she was safe, and to make doubly sure that James couldn’t get near her again. His mentor only stepped in once or twice, but apparently Alex was doing pretty damn well. 

It ended with James in prison. Three year sentence. A fine on top of that, and a ten year restraining order that Maria could renew upon its expiration. 

Alex had never seen such a wide smile on her lips before.

As they left the courtroom, having watched James get dragged away and thrown in the back of a squad cruiser, Maria threw herself onto Alex and kissed his cheek, holding him tight. “Thank you so much, Alexander. This means the world to me. Thank you so, so much!” She said against his neck, eyes welling up just a little bit. 

He smiled and held her close, kissing her temple. “It was the least I could do, Maria. I’m so glad that I could get you away from him.” He said gently, rubbing her back softly. “What’s next?”

“Eliza said I could stay with her until I get back on my feet again, and I’m hoping after that… I’ll start paying her rent, but… She’s…” Maria gave a soft sigh, glancing back to the other girl, who had busied herself with John. “She’s amazing, Alex. You helped me get away from James, you’ve introduced me to the most wonderful girl…. Once this is all over, for good… Once this has settled down, I… I’d like to try and take it further, if you think she’d be interested… I think I’d like to ask her on a date.” 

Alex pulled back to look at her, smiling when he saw the bright flush of her cheeks.

“Maria, she’s an angel. So are you. You’d be perfect together, and I hope it works out…” He said softly, kissing right between her eyes before he pulled her back into a hug. “I wish nothing but the best for you both, and anything you need, either of you, don’t hesitate to come to me or John. You’re family now.” He grinned, ruffling her hair a bit before he pulled away completely, giving her a glowing smile. 

She returned it easily. She was like an entirely new person. 

Alex hoped he would never see that smile fade. 

END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) i have no idea how legal proceedings work   
> 2) oh god i hope i did it somewhat okay  
> 3) wow two chapters in one day and a finished fic 
> 
> hot diggity damn i'm trying again 
> 
> there may be a shortage of posts for a while, as my bff is here until jan. 19, so there might not be much writing time. we'll see though. 
> 
> hope you guys liked it, and hope you're looking forward to some more marliza from this point <3 
> 
> until next time,   
> -krys

**Author's Note:**

> hey hey hey! something else for King's! I'm finally getting to my girls! <3   
> There will be Marliza in this series! I'm v excited for it to get to this point, and I'm having fun writing this as well. Hope you guys all enjoy! 
> 
> until next time, 
> 
> krys


End file.
